Man charged with peeping, flashing

Alleged crimes happened in store at Waldorf mall

Friday, Feb. 5, 2010

A former clothing store employee who worked at a Waldorf mall was charged Jan. 24 with exposing himself to a customer and using mirrors to spy on a teenage girl in a changing room, court documents state.

Michael David Gordon, 27, an assistant manager with Pacific Sunwear in St. Charles Towne Center, allegedly grabbed a woman by the arm and pulled her into a dressing room the afternoon of Jan. 9, the papers indicate. Once inside the empty room at the back of PacSun, Gordon pulled down his tight, purple leggings almost to his knees, exposing himself, the 18-year-old woman told police.

The teen said she was shocked and didn't know what to do, so she left the store.

Another teenage customer later told police that she saw Gordon spying on her while she was in a fitting room. Gordon was arrested later in the month and charged with second-degree assault, peeping tom, indecent exposure and visual surveillance with prurient intent.

Gordon of Brandywine said the allegations are false and might stem from a dispute he had with a customer during the holiday season.

"It's a crock," Gordon said of the charges. "I have morals and core values. … I don't crawl around and look at people in fitting rooms."

Court documents indicate that a 15-year-old girl reported seeing Gordon grab the woman on Jan. 9 and told police the victim looked shocked when she walked out of the changing room.

Then, when Gordon moved to a different position in the dressing area, the 15-year-old allegedly also saw his exposed genitals.

The same day, a 14-year-old girl was trying on clothes at the store when she noticed Gordon lying on the floor in an adjacent fitting room "watching her change through a set of mirrors," the teen told a sheriff's officer Jan. 11.

The three victims' descriptions of the employee involved in the incidents matched Gordon.

He was also the only employee with access to the changing room keys during the time the incidents allegedly occurred, he reported to detective Kenneth Klezia.

But Gordon said he is confident his blamelessness will come to light.

"I'm going to have faith in innocent until proven guilty," he said.

According to Gordon, his trouble started after Christmas, when a customer became irate while waiting in line to make a return. After the interaction, PacSun received six or seven complaints from various customers about Gordon, "ultimately trying to get me fired." Police later began investigating the allegations of indecent exposure and spying on a customer, Gordon said.

"The detective said he thinks I have a problem, and it was an impulse, and I couldn't control it," Gordon said.

But Gordon described the accusations as ridiculous, asking how in a busy store, the 14-year-old was the only person who saw him sprawled on the floor, trying to spy on her. In addition, the claims of indecent exposure make no mention of a tattoo that he's had in the groin area for about a year, he said.

However, Diane Richardson, spokeswoman for the Charles County Sheriff's Office, pointed out that three separate incidents were reported.

"There were no misunderstandings," Richardson said. "It was clear what his intentions were."

Gordon no longer works for PacSun, where he was employed from mid-November to the middle of January, according to a company spokesperson. He was released from jail on a $3,000 bond and is scheduled to appear in court June 4.

Last year, Gordon was charged in Prince George's County with second-degree assault and possession of a handgun in a vehicle, but the charges were dropped, according to online court records. A questionnaire filed in Gordon's criminal case stated he has at least one prior conviction.

According to court records from Georgia, Gordon was accused of battery related to an incident in 2005, but the charge was dropped in December 2008.

brodgers@somdnews.com